Bang!
The first shot Alucard fired was from the black gun, Jackal, followed immediately by a rapid-fire succession of glowing blue bullets from the white gun, Casull.
Mihawk held Yoru before his face, leaving only his right eye exposed. His Hawk-Eyes suddenly constricted as he tracked the trajectory of the incoming rounds. "I see them!"
An instant before the bullets could graze his pupils, his body snapped backward. Evading the lead, he lunged toward Alucard.
As for the bullets Mihawk fired back in exchange, Alucard couldn't have cared less. He allowed the slashes to carve into his flesh, splitting apart for a moment only to knit back together instantly.
"Obsidian Flash Flower!"
Midway through his evasive charge, Mihawk suddenly leaped. It appeared as though he swung his blade once in mid-air, but in reality, he had unleashed a hundred strikes in a heartbeat, weaving them into a brilliant "sword-flower" that bloomed magnificently toward Alucard.
Bang! Bang! Bang! Bang!
Alucard raised both pistols, unleashing a storm of bullets that collided with the floral display of sword ki. Above and below, the two sides clashed, locked in a temporary stalemate.
"You're within my range!"
In mid-air, Mihawk performed a maneuver that would leave an ordinary swordsman in disbelief. He planted both feet on the wide crossguard of the Supreme Grade blade, crouching low. In an instant, the entire sword was coated in a pitch-black sheen. Using the full weight of his body, he dove straight down.
Seeing this, Alucard didn't bother to dodge, allowing Mihawk's blade to plunge deep into his right shoulder.
Such an easy hit caused Mihawk's expression to shift in surprise. Just as he prepared to observe Alucard's next move, a chilling sensation brushed against his chest. Glancing down, he saw a cold barrel pointed directly at his heart.
BANG!!!
The pirates standing nearby turned pale with fright at the sight.
"Did the bullet hit?"
"Is Hawk-Eyes dead?"
Whooshโ!
Just when everyone thought Mihawk had been taken down, he leaped backward, spanning dozens of meters with the Black Blade in hand. Upon closer inspection, he seemed uninjured, but a hole had been torn through the left side of his coat.
"Heh... Remarkable reflexes." Alucard twirled the black Jackal by his side and chuckled.
Noticing the blood flowing from the wound on Alucard's right shoulder was already flowing backward and regenerating, Mihawk spoke solemnly, "The Immortal, truly a name that lives up to its reputation."
Midway through his sentence, Mihawk's tone turned icy. "However, you don't seem to be using your full strength."
Alucard threw his head back and laughed. "Do you have the power to make me use it?"
The small mustache at the corners of Mihawk's mouth twitched into a smirk. In the next instant, he burst forward, appearing right in front of Alucard. "Then I'll just have to force it out of you!"
Mihawk unleashed a sudden, violent slash. Alucard tilted his body to the side, and the resulting sword ki soared into the sky, cleaving the white clouds above in two.
Click!
The slide racked as Alucard pressed the barrel against Mihawk's chest once more. Just as Mihawk prepared to retreat again, he felt a sudden tightening around his ankles. Looking down, he discovered countless shadow-hands wearing the same white gloves as Alucard, gripping his ankles in a death vice.
"Is this the end for Hawk-Eyes?" a sharp-eyed Marine wondered internally.
To their surprise, Mihawk reached out with his other hand and drew the small cross-dagger from his neck. With a single flourish, he unleashed an incredibly fierce wave of sword ki.
However, Alucard caught the sword ki in his mouth. With a snap of his fangs, he crunched the slash into fragments.
Mihawk didn't care that his strike had been so easily neutralized. He seized the opening, spinning Yoru in a reverse grip to sever the shadow-hands holding his ankles before rapidly retreating.
The moment Mihawk broke free, a bronze-colored, ancient-looking spear appeared in Alucard's hand.
"Kazikli Bey: Impaling Castle!"
As Alucard thrust the spear into the pool of blood on the ground, countless stakes erupted from the earth. Faced with this, Mihawk was forced into a desperate defense. Unable to keep up with a single hand, he held Yoru in his right and his cross-dagger in his left, utilizing a pseudo-Dual Wield style to frantically deflect the onslaught of the Impaling Castle.
Ten seconds later, the stakes closing in on Mihawk had been hacked to splinters, but he was far from unscathed. Several spots on his ornate patterned coat had been pierced, revealing lacerated skin and fresh blood beneath.
Aboard the Thousand Sunny, Zoro had produced a pair of binoculars from somewhere. Watching the battle at the center of the field, he muttered in shock, "That guy... Hawk-Eyes is being suppressed? How is that possible...?"
"Everyone from the Straw Hat crew!!"
By then, Sabo had arrived, leaping onto the ship's railing. He handed the unconscious Luffy over to Sanji. "Take this chance and evacuate immediately!"
"What about you, Sabo?" Nami asked.
Sabo pulled his hat low. "Ace hasn't escaped yet. I can't leave, and I won't!"
"Awooo!" Franky poked his head out from the bridge beneath the lawn. "The Coup de Burst is ready! We can bug out whenever!"
"Don't let Dragon's bloodline escape!"
"Capture the Straw Hat boy!"
The pursuing Marines were closing in on the Thousand Sunny. Sabo swung his pipe and leaped from the railing, plunging both hands into the pier. "Dragon's Impact!"
The ground shattered in a spiderweb pattern, the explosive force causing the earth to crumble and collapse. The Marines were momentarily cut off from the pursuit.
"Go, now!" Sabo shouted.
Franky quickly turned the Sunny's bow as the stern thrusters erupted with energy. The Thousand Sunny soared dozens of meters into the sky, leaving a silver streak across the sea.
BOOM!!!
Back on the battlefield, another bottomless chasm was carved into the groundโMihawk's doing.
Alucard raised his index and middle fingers. From the pool of blood, countless more stakes erupted, but these were larger and even more grotesque than before.
"Kazikli Bey: King of Execution!"
